


Over-Reliant; Under-Appreciated

by Star_less



Category: Big Hero 6 (2014)
Genre: Arguing, Brotherly Affection, Brotherly Angst, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Desperation, Emotional Hiro Hamada, Gen, Hyper-focus, Not Beta Read, Omorashi, One Shot, Pre-Canon, Protective Tadashi Hamada, Slice of Life, Wetting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:55:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,306
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24987907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Star_less/pseuds/Star_less
Summary: A hyper-focusing Hiro Hamada relies on big-brother Tadashi to nudge him to the bathroom every now and then. When an argument breaks out between the two and a cold shoulder develops, everything falls apart.“I need you to tell me what’s going on, right now, this second,” Tadashi said sternly, tugging Hiro a little further away from the desk and spinning him around so they were eye to eye, Tadashi’s hands firm on his shoulders. He’d be dragging Hiro to the bathroom if the boy didn’t move of his own accord in the next two minutes.“Hiro, that was for school!” he fumed, his face tight and white with upset. “Is that what this is about?” He spun to face Hiro again, eyes glinting with anger, “Because I got the lab for my school project? Because I wouldn’t let you inside? So you…” Disbelief and upset made his voice die for a moment, “…you sabotaged my work?!”
Relationships: Hiro Hamada & Tadashi Hamada
Comments: 5
Kudos: 44





	Over-Reliant; Under-Appreciated

**Author's Note:**

> READ TAGS. This isn't going to be for everyone. I'm really glad I finished this one though; I had it on my fic list since 2015!

“Hiro, bathroom.”

Tadashi felt as though his vocabulary consisted entirely of those two words lately. He knew it wasn’t Hiro’s fault, not really, it was an unholy combination of his ability to hyperfocus and the aftermath of their parents’ crash which had left his bladder nervy and he neglectful of his body’s needs. He barely left Tadashi’s sight, longing to make sure he was okay, that ‘Tadashi wasn’t going to abandon him either’.  
Lately, it was all he saw out of the corner of his eye – Hiro, legs crossed at the ankles, jiggling ferociously. No matter whether he was watching TV…

“Hiro,” Louder this time, as he leaned forward in his chair and pulled a face, “Bathroom.”

…working in the café…

“Earth to Hiro…? You in there somewhere?”

…or completing homework—like right now—

nothing was able to pull the boy from whatever he was doing. Tadashi had finished his homework twenty minutes ago. Well… he hadn’t _finished_ it, but that was around the time when he tuned in to how much Hiro was potty dancing at the side of him – those little whimpers, tugs at the front of his sweatpants – which pulled him away from his work pretty much instantly. Therein began what was quickly becoming the bane of Tadashi’s life… “Hiro,” he made his way over to the boy’s chair, jiggling him free from the desk. “You’re going to explode, get up!”

“Dude!” Hiro grunted impatiently. If Tadashi’s words hadn’t sunk into the boy’s brain the fact that his legs were jiggling and he was unable to keep his bum in one spot should have brought him down to Earth with a bump, but it didn’t. “I was working on my newest ‘bot. It needs tweaking. I give the destroy command and it doesn’t trigger automatically. The A.I. must be buggy…” he mumbled, dipping back into the unending rambling of his mind. Tadashi could have cried, seeing his eyes glaze over a little.

“I need you to tell me what’s going on, right now, this second,” Tadashi said sternly, tugging Hiro a little further away from the desk and spinning him around so they were eye to eye, Tadashi’s hands firm on his shoulders. He’d be dragging Hiro to the bathroom if the boy didn’t move of his own accord in the next two minutes. “Forget the bots. What’s going on in there, hm?” 

“You pulled me away from m- my—”

It was almost beautiful – worked like a charm every time. Hiro’s voice started thick with irritation, but then the penny seemed to drop; his voice dipped away, his mouth opened in gentle surprise, his eyes widened against the changing colour of his cheeks; white, then pink, then bright embarrassed red. Tadashi bit back the victorious smile, murmuring, indicating for Hiro to tell him exactly what he had realised. Hiro took in a sharp breath filled with anxiety, and his midsection sort of bobbed with him, full. “Tadashi!” he squeaked, suddenly tense and breathless and jerking against Tadashi’s palms still flat against his shoulders. “I- I have to go pee!” 

The magic words. Tadashi nodded and relented instantly, pulling his grip away from Hiro; the boy drew in another tight, sharp breath and darted across the hallway, his footsteps thick and intense.  
Tadashi let him do what he needed to do in peace, of course, although couldn’t help but notice that the sound of water on water – hard and splashy sounding – came slightly before the clang of the seat going up.  
He shook his head in fond disbelief, turning back to the assignment he was writing up and taking a moment to read across what he had written so he could add the last few lines of a conclusion. It needed another look over, ideally, and a spell check – but for the most part was finished. Now that he had gotten the essay written, he had to produce the robotics project that was to go alongside it. It was the big project of his first year at SFIT; the project that would go on to carve out his second and final years at the institute. He had tried not to think about his big project so much. Oh, he had ideas whirring around in his brain the day he set foot on campus… it was just… 

“…Finished!”  
Hiro’s trilling voice came out over the sound of the flush and running of the basin. Therein lay Tadashi’s problem, as much as he hated to admit it. Hiro was clingy and wanted to be with Tadashi as much as was possible. Aunt Cass had always soothed Tadashi, told him that his robotics project came over the comfort of his little brother – after all, they would have plenty of time to spend together when Tadashi returned – and although Tadashi was happy to accept this, slinging his backpack over his shoulder and heading off to campus for five days a week, the nagging feeling of guilt didn’t quite go away, even when he was neck-deep in Baymax’s innards trying to work out why he wasn’t at full functionality.  
~

“Almost there. Don’t open your eyes, okay?” Aunt Cass cooed with excitement, her palms over Tadashi’s eyes. Hiro had one arm linked on his brother’s, tugging him along, and almost wanted to point out that had Tadashi opened his eyes the most he would see was Aunt Cass’ pink palms, and so the surprise was kept. Tadashi laughed, intrigue flushing through. What is it, guys? he asked, but Hiro pressed his lips tight and gave a knowing smile to Aunt Cass. It had been really hard to keep it a secret for all these weeks, and Hiro had found himself slipping up at least three times with mumbles about all the new projects he was going to make. 

“Okay, you can open your eyes now!” Cass smiled. On cue she let her palms fall and Hiro loosened his grip slightly to reveal the big surprise; Cass and Hiro had worked together while Tadashi was working at the SFIT lab, emptying the garage so it was some extra laboratory space for him rather than him having to trek across the city to get to SFIT. Now that Aunt Cass’ car had gone, the garage didn’t look anything much like a garage. Huddling to the right was a computer monitor and 3D printing area, casting a low blue glow into what was an otherwise white room. Stretching from the computer monitor, in a U-shape, was a combination tool-bench and desk for Tadashi to work on his projects in peace whether they be essay-based or robotics, already filled with tools and oil. The vending machines that once stood in the café – the snack machine and the drink machine – yes, those ones that had mysteriously broken (although Cass knew Tadashi was secretly scavenging for parts) now stood next to one another fixed and filled with leftover café stock. There was even a sofa bed. It didn’t look the comfiest – a ratty red thing – but it would be perfect for any accidental all nighters. 

Tadashi ‘wow’ed softly, spinning slowly to take everything in, a grateful smile spreading slowly over his face. He supposed Cass had to keep Hiro entertained while he was on campus… although this really wasn’t what he had expected.  
Running a hand through his hair, the eighteen year old laughed in disbelief. “What did I ever do to deserve this?!”

“Consider it a late present for getting into SFIT in the first place,” Cass giggled. “Me and Hiro thought you needed a little lab space that was closer to home. My car’s happier in the driveway, anyway.”

Hiro was studying Tadashi intently, looking for signs of excitement. “Do you like it, ‘dashi?” he blurted at last—why wasn’t he all happy and bouncy?!—clinging to his brother’s arm. “Now you can stay here and do all sorts of projects!” A beam, “I can’t wait to work with you! It’s gonna be so much fun! We could make those hoverboots for Mochi! Ooh, no – whattabouta bot that does all your homework for you?! I need one of those!”

The happy atmosphere gave way to awkwardness; lightning crackled unsurely between the one gaze that Cass and Tadashi shared. “Hiro, buddy,” Tadashi started, kneeling to his level, speaking slow and velveteen in the hopes that it would be enough to win Hiro over because damn it he didn’t want to upset the boy. “I can’t let you into the lab while I’m working here. I need peace and quiet.”

Hiro’s face fell, his chin wobbling despite him trying very hard to show no emotion as the realisation punched him in the gut. “B- but—I can be quiet, I can just watch?” he pleaded, stammering. The thought that Tadashi would want privacy and quiet to work on his projects was something that hadn’t entered Hiro’s head. They spent so much time together, Cass even joked they were surgically attached at the hip, so why didn’t Tadashi want to spend any time with him now? Especially now that the lab was so close to home! “I- I won’t bother you?” he offered, in earnest. Now, his voice was a mewl. Maybe this laboratory thing wasn’t a good idea. “I- I’ll just work on…” he looked around, frantic now, as though an excuse was going to fall from thin air. “..um, my homework, or—or something.”

Tadashi shook his head. “Hiro, no.” His voice was firm, sort of thundering right down into Hiro’s belly--something Hiro hadn’t felt before and didn’t like—“Our bedroom is for homework. The lab is for me to work.”

“Can’t I work there too? I have ‘bots to fix, ‘n stuff!” Hiro protested. 

Tadashi shook his head again, wincing sympathetically. “Hiro, no.”

“Whaddabout when you’re not working?”

“ _No_ , Hiro.” Cass took over this one. “I don’t trust you in the lab alone.” With Tadashi she trusted Hiro entirely; without was a different story. She knew all too well of Hiro’s ability to hyperfocus and how he could injure himself in the lab alone. “The lab is for Tadashi’s work and Tadashi’s work only.” Perhaps once Tadashi had finished his big project she would relent; although telling this to the boy would only result in him pestering Tadashi, and she was sure Tadashi could do without that right now. 

Hiro fell quiet, arms at his sides. “Okay,” he mumbled upsettedly, pushing his way past his older brother and going in the direction of his bedroom. “You enjoy your lab, Tadashi,” Cass smiled, and it only made Hiro feel grumpier. That wasn’t supposed to be Tadashi’s lab, that was supposed to be theirs. They were supposed to work together, like they always did, and here Tadashi was acting as if he was some sort of nuisance. Not only that, but Cass obviously thought he was a big baby!  
As the week unfolded before him, Hiro’s worst fears were confirmed. Rather than having the free time to spend at home with he and Cass, Tadashi was spending even more time working away in the garage lab. Cass would send Hiro out with a plate of whatever dinner was that evening, and Tadashi would take it and promise Hiro’s scowling face that he would come back in time for bedtime, only for Hiro to lie in the dark until his eyes ached to find that his brother had fallen asleep in the lab again.  
…Somehow, things haven’t been working out, either. It was as though the universe knew Hiro Hamada was in a bad mood. His newest bot wouldn’t work no matter what way he coded in the A.I., and one of its legs was permanently loose in the joint socket so that the slightest touch would force the leg to fall off and clunk, usually directly (painfully) against his foot. All it needed was a little tightening with a wrench, but see, the wrench that Hiro kept in his bedroom was a little too stiff to work properly… and his perfectly-fine back-up wrench must’ve _accidentally_ got swept up in Cass’ arms when she’d gone looking for Tadashi’s tools to fill the new lab. _Whoops._

…well, he was just going to have to get in there and fix it, wasn’t he?  
~

Hiro tiptoed toward the garage in his slippers, grimacing as the wet grass suckered up to the soles of his feet. It was late at night, it was dark, it was cold. It was a rare night that Tadashi had chosen to spend in the house – so Hiro had the perfect cover.  
The lab was code locked. It always had been, but Hiro suspected Cass had changed the password to prevent Hiro from getting inside now that this new stupid rule was in place. Fumbling with the flashlight he had stuffed haphazardly into his pyjama top Hiro shone a belt of light at the keypad. First, he punched in the numbers ‘4’, ‘7’, ‘4’, ‘5’. He would have liked to have said this was because of some clever reason, like, ‘oh, the numbers were fainter than those around it’… but not really. It was the only passcode Hiro knew. The passcode box flashed red and Hiro groaned, upset prickling his tummy. Dammit! He really wished that one would have worked! Then again, he didn’t really expect much less.  
“Alright, buddy, this one’s for you.” He sighed, reaching into his pyjama top for the second time. Out of his hand came, scuttling, what looked to be a cube shaped spider. The cube beeped quietly, rolling across the keypad. There were a few seconds of quiet thought, before the cube typed in the correct code. Hiro gleamed with pride. “Awesome! C’mere!”  
He scratched the small cube’s head, much like you would a puppy; it scuttled happily up his sleeve - and Hiro entered the lab.  
The lab was dark. That was Hiro’s first thought. The lab was dark and his little code-cracker scuttled up and down his sleeve, tickling. He fidgeted a little, scratching his sleeve and trying to adjust to the darkness. “Stop it, sit still.” He hissed. His free hand felt along the wall of the laboratory in hunt for the lightswitch; throwing it on, he squinted again in adjustment of the new brightness. To look at, it was as though Tadashi hadn’t been in the lab. Nothing was out of place, and everything seemed to be locked away or tucked tightly away from Hiro’s clutches – almost as though he had suspected Hiro would do this. Still, the fourteen year old shuffled excitedly over to the nearby work bench, plopping down on it and emptying the pockets of his pyjamas; his broken bot falling out in a mess of nuts, bolts and joints. The wrench. He needed the wrench. Maybe a smidgen of oil? Just in case he tightened it up too much? Spinning around in the chair, he reached out for one of the drawers. It slid open with ease (Hiro didn’t hear his little code cracker chirruping away) and out came his wrench. Quietly, he tinkered with his bot and – despite the late hour – drifted into hyperfocus. Ooh, maybe he could even use the 3D printer to add some wheels?!

His small code-cracking cube scuttled, unnoticed, across the desk.  
~

It was, from that moment, like any other day. The lab melted away and it was just Hiro, his broken bot, and the endless possibilities on how to fix it. He moved to grab a wrench, some oil, a screwdriver on total autopilot; fluid, learned motions. The only thing that was different was the absence of Tadashi’s voice, which usually floated in and out of his ears telling him, ‘Hiro, bathroom, now!’.  
Subconsciously, Hiro tightened his legs a little all the same. 

To the side of him, there was a soft rustle. But Hiro was hyperfocusing, and a soft rustle was nothing compared to the sound of Tadashi’s voice. He hummed to himself, turning to face the 3D printer, keys tik-takking across the desk as fast as he thought up ideas. 

There was another rustle, and this time a clunk. The clunk was loud enough to register somewhere in Hiro’s brain; “Stop it,” he mumbled, tapping the desk idly and thinking of his code-cracking critter.  
Mmm. That was odd. His hand felt thick with oil. He had pulled some out – but he hadn’t used any…  
He looked toward his hand and found, yes, it was dripping with oil. So was the table. There, fighting through the thick black gloop and leaving tiny parallel tracks in its place, was the little code cracker.  
Hiro leaped up from his chair in an instant. “Oh, shit!” he swore, although filthier curses ran through his mind. “No!” he hissed, “Stop it!”

The code-cracker did not. In fact, it only seemed to skitter around even faster. 

“Stop it, please!” Hiro pleaded, chasing the cube around. It seemed to know exactly what it was doing; speeding up when Hiro got too close and moving in circles. Hiro grunted with exertion, dizzied by having to chase the bot… and lost his footing, skidding in the oil slick on the floor then landing with a loud ‘oof’ and a splash, bum covered in the black grease. The cube disappeared behind some canisters, pushing them over for the hell of it, and they thundered loudly to the floor. 

“Hiro? What the hell is going on?”

…oops.  
~

“Unbelievable.” Tadashi rubbed his temples. His voice was hard and loud and angry - louder and angrier than Hiro had ever heard before. “You disobeyed Cass. You disobeyed _me_. Look at the mess!” He turned, groaning, taking in the grease puddles covering his brand new lab. His computer and 3D printer looked active, glowing in standby – and with a scoff and sinking heart he stormed to the monitor, thumping keys and scrolling. “Hiro!” he snapped, the sinking feeling in his gut plummeting further and further, gaze glued to the screen.  
Having an argument with Hiro at 4am wasn’t part of the plan, but here they were; not only had Hiro made a mess of his lab but he had clearly used the computer… and deleted some important files for his school project, meaning he’d have to spend precious time – time he lacked - re-creating them. “Hiro, that was for school!” he fumed, his face tight and white with upset. “Is that what this is about?” He spun to face Hiro again, eyes glinting with anger, “Because I got the lab for my school project? Because I wouldn’t let you inside? So you…” Disbelief and upset made his voice die for a moment, “…you sabotaged my work?!”

“…No.”  
(Yes.)  
Oh, Hiro hated how well Tadashi knew him. His eyes ached, both with tiredness and upset. “I didn’t mean to,” he squeaked babyishly, voice all strangled like he was about to cry. He really hadn’t meant to delete the files – didn’t even realise he had. “I just wanted to- to join in.” his chin wobbled; he squirmed. Hating how angry Tadashi seemed.  
“Hiro, I’m trying to protect you.” Tadashi sighed. “And don’t—don’t you think sometimes I need some time away from you?” He blurted it out, bristling with adrenaline, and regretting it a few seconds later when Hiro looked as though he had been punched in the gut.  
“Alright,” Hiro said in a tiny shaking voice, turning on his heel.  
~

The brothers didn’t talk for a little while after that. Tadashi could have been a lot meaner and a lot angrier, yes, but that was the first real argument the two had had in ages.  
Tadashi needed time away from Hiro - so that was what Hiro gave him. At breakfast the siblings stared at their plates rather than at one another. They said not a word at dinner, and at bedtime Hiro yanked the room divider into place so neither brother could see the other before Tadashi threw the bedroom into darkness without saying goodnight.  
(The cold shoulder building between the two lasted longer than Cass had ever seen an argument between the two last. As much as Hiro hated not being around his brother, as much as it made his belly squirm, he was stubborn. One night he tiptoed down to the washing machine, cheeks red, underwear bundled in one hand. ‘Again?’ Cass crooned sadly. Fourth pair this week. ‘Don’t you think you should talk to ‘Dashi, Hiro?’ she whispered. Like it or not, Tadashi worked wonders on his younger brother.  
Hiro said no.)

For the first time in almost a week, though, the brothers ended up spending at least a little time together. It was Aunt Cass’ turn to pick whatever they watched over dinner and, as a big horror movie fan, she’d picked some sort of gory slasher set in a haunted house. But, oddly enough, only a couple of minutes in she had jumped up and declared she had ‘too much work’ to do and left. Hiro was curled up in Aunt Cass’ large armchair and suddenly it felt too big for him. He hated horror movies, but Tadashi wasn’t speaking to him so he couldn’t cuddle up and hide like usual…  
He could feel a little tickle somewhere in the back of his brain, that maybe he had to pee too – but he ignored it, rocking forward. Oh, how he almost wished Tadashi would speak up again and rouse him – but he doesn’t. Maybe—maybe he doesn’t need to go that badly? Tadashi would only speak up when it got really bad, like ‘almost-going’ kinda bad. Hiro slumped back again. His legs jiggled, jellified and nervous. They jiggle hard; thunk-thunk-thunk against the foot of the armchair. 

Tadashi looked at him. “Bathroom.” His voice was flat – but he’d said it. 

Hiro bit back a pleased smile, zoning out, glare going through the television in an attempt not to watch. The sensation that he has to pee is shoved to the back of his mind as the immediate threat – gory slasher zombies. Somehow he managed to zone out from the movie too – all that passed his eyes was a coloured blur. The sounds – slicing of knives, screams, snaps – came loud and clear instead… and Hiro jumped and startled at every single one. His bladder thumped and, trembling, he held himself like he was a desperate little kid. His face was tight with horror, eyes blown as wide as they could go, glinting upsettedly.

Tadashi so badly wanted to ignore him. Teach him a lesson. But he couldn’t. Cass had already started up washing extra, and Hiro always looked so small and timid, it wasn’t in his nature to teach him a lesson like that. Giving him the cold shoulder was enough. He needed help with this one. “Hiro…” firm, flat. “Time to get up.”  
Nothing. Hiro’s legs jerk against the sofa. Tadashi wondered if it would be easy to launder an armchair, because that was exactly where Hiro was hurtling. A handful of minutes later his gaze flickered to his little brother for a third and final time; he sighed. “Hiro,” he said softly in that familiar voice of his; not flat but concerned, “bathroom.”

Hiro didn’t move. The grip between his legs was tight, the whimpering grew in intensity. He didn’t hear Tadashi, his gaze stuck on the screen, his mind working overtime. He had gone beyond purposefully ignoring Tadashi – this was hyper-focused anxiety. If he got up now, he was going to be hurt like the teenager in the movie was. All of his arms would fall off. He would be haunted by a demon all night. His bladder pushed at him and he felt it a little bit but knew he couldn’t. What if he went to pee and got ambushed?!  
Tadashi sighed, watching as Hiro rocked back and forth, pulling all of his weight into his front as though he was about to explode. He rose. “Come on,” he said softly, hoisting Hiro up from under the armpits. “It’s time you went for a bathroom break.”

“NOOOOOOO!” Hiro screamed as Tadashi pulled away and began taking him toward the bathroom, cowering in fear. His heart raced in his chest and pounded against his ears; so lost in his anxiety that the cosy living room melted away to a howling eerie forest and the comforting grip of his big brother gave way to a blood-hungry zombie ready to suck on his bones. He twisted violently in Tadashi’s arms, whimpering ‘no! no! no!’s into the fabric of Tadashi’s nightshirt.  
Frankly, Tadashi was amazed that Hiro hadn’t wet himself he was so deep in fear. “I’m taking you to the bathroom,” Tadashi tousled his hair, narrating as though Hiro was three years old.  
…It was only when Tadashi let go of the teenager in front of the toilet that he seemed to grasp reality once more; that, or the clench from his bladder upon recognising the toilet was finally too powerful to ignore. “…Tadashi?” Hiro asked weakly, looking slowly from the toilet to his older brother in surprise. His hands were shifting, gripping himself through the fabric of his pyjama pants. A few tiny wet spots began to appear on his crotch as he rocked on his heels. “B- but…”  
“I’m doing what I always do. Go, bonehead, before you have an accident.” Tadashi chuckled, giving the younger the privacy he deserved. It seemed, thought Hiro, as he fought with his pyjamas, he was forgiven.

(“Hiro…” Just the tone of voice Tadashi used was enough to tell Hiro what he should’ve been doing.  
Hiro giggled in defence, squirming, free hand gripping himself through his cargo shorts. “I’m going, I’m going…!” he nodded. And as he wriggled free, a small reprieve from mopping up the oil in Tadashi’s lab just in case he left a bigger puddle in its place, he _knew_ he was forgiven.)


End file.
